US defense chief to visit Germany to host Ukraine meeting

​​​​​​​By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will travel Thursday to the Ramstein Air Base in Germany to host the Ukrainian defense contact group on Sept. 6, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

"The Secretary and chairman (US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown) will join ministers of defense and senior military officials from nearly 50 nations to discuss the ongoing war in Ukraine and the continued close coordination by the international community to deliver to Ukraine the support it needs to defend itself," spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters.

It will be the 24th meeting of the Ukraine defense contact group since Austin formed the international body in April 2022, he said.

Austin will have a chance to meet Ukrainian and international partners later this week at Ramstein, where the US will be "very focused" on Ukraine's security assistance needs.

"In terms of any changes to our policy, I'm not going to have anything to provide again. There has been no changes. And as it relates to potential Ukrainian operations, I'm just not going to speculate or talk about potential future ops," said Ryder.

The US remains committed to supporting Ukraine's ability to defend itself and to protect its sovereign territory, as well as build its ability to deter against Russia, he reiterated.

The Pentagon recently announced its latest package of security assistance for Ukraine at up to $125 million.

It included key weapons and ammunition to meet Ukraine's most urgent needs, including air-defense capabilities.